Is there anything better than a road trip? All the new sights to see, the new smells to sniff, the new trees to pee. Nope, nothing better, unless . . .
it's a road trip with a box of food and beds following every mile of the way.
We are a family of dogs traveling across the country with our mom and dad (cause dad has to drive and mom has to feed us). We'll be taking pics and videos of cool stuff we see and do.
Wanna see what we dig up? Follow us here . . .

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Saturday, July 31, 2010

We've become like the White Rabbin in Alice in Wonderland - we're late, we're late, we're late for a very important date. This time it was for the Show Us Your Tongues Contest on Fido Friendly's blog. We thought the deadline was July 30, but it was July 20! We didn't care about winning the contest, but Cooper has one of the longest tongues we've ever seen when he's hot and tired and we just thought it was funny! So, since we missed the Fido Friendly thing, we're gonna share it with all of you! And if you guys have some tongue pics you wanna share, too, we would love to see them - we're sure everybody's is hanging to the ground in this heat! Anyway, here is our entry in the Dog Days of Summer Tongue Contest.

Cooper - lettin' it all hang out!

Is that a long tongue or what!?

The Road Dogs

Now, on to the blog hop - (we have more in common with the White Rabbit than we thought :) hop, hop, hop . . .

Wednesday, July 28, 2010

Happy Birthday Puddles Duddles Rainwater! We're s'posed to be "roasting" you today, but we have only good things to say about you! You're a beautiful, clever girl and we totally appreciate your wicked sense of humor and your bad girl ways! They're all part of the Puddles charm! So, we just wanna say - go out there and party your butt off and have the most furbulous birthday ever!

Monday, July 26, 2010

As you all can probably tell - we Road Dogs like to have a good time! And thanks to our Mom and Dad, we have lots of good times. But, we have a serious side, too and right now we want to tell you about some dogs that don't get to have any good times. We're talking about those unfortunate dogs that are used in dog fighting. We've been reading about Sweet Shelby and it would appear that she knows about this barbaric business up close and personal.

The reason we're writing this today is that a man named David Tant was convicted of dog-fighting in SC in 2004. He was sentenced to serve 30 years in prison for this crime. After serving only 6 years, he is now seeking parole. On July 21, the Board shockingly voted 2 to 1 in favor of his parole! Because it was not a unanimous decision either way, Tant's case heads to a full hearing of the Probation, Parole and Pardon Services Board on September 8, 2010 in Columbia, SC.

Tant, 63, will have to convince four of the seven board members that he should be let out when the group meets again. If his request is declined, he can ask for parole again in one year.

Officials from the Charleston Animal Society have vowed to fight his release.

You will notice that this petition was started before the original parole hearing and met the original goal of 2000 signatures. But, the petition is ongoing and will collect signatures until the full Board hearing on September 8, so feel free to go ahead and add yours!

Here is a message from Kay Hyman, Director of Marketing and PR, Charleston Animal Society:

Hello everyone, Thanks for your support of our petition online http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/convicted-dog-fighter-david-tant-seeks-parole and in print to keep David Tant, convicted dog abuser in jail. So far we have over 3,000 physical signatures and 1,500 online signatures. If you have paper petitions and want to put them all together for the hearing, please mail them to our shelter at Charleston Animal Society,2455 Remount Rd. North Charleston, S.C. 29406.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
We would like to now encourage each of you to write a letter to local newspapers editorial staff to keep the parole hearing and the inhumane blood sport of dog fighting, in the public eye. We have attached the mailing addresses and online submission emails for each paper.

Please email letters to our general email box at info@charlestonanimalsociety.org if you choose to email directly to the papers , please cc us so we can keep a record of your submission. Sometimes letters are lost so we want to make sure your voices and words are seen and heard. Mail letters to: Charleston Animal Society David Tant Letters 2455 Remount Rd. North Charleston, S.C. 29405.

Here is a list of bullet points about the Tant case and dog fighting in general that will help you to write your letter. We want these letters to be your words so that the impact of your feelings about David Tant, dog fighting and his bid for parole will be felt. Public opinion in such cases can be very impactful with the parole board.

DOG FIGHTING BULLET POINTS

· David Tant was considered the largest breeder of pit bulls on the east coast, perfecting his bloodline for fighters for over 40 years. He earned money from breeding, selling and fighting dogs.

· When Charleston County sheriff's deputies arrived at Tants property, they found dozens of pit bulls. Some were caged and hidden from view by tall grass while others were in surrounding woods, tethered to the ground with heavy chains.

· David Tant had on his premises treadmills fitted for dogs, a pit used in past fights, armed devices, cattle prods used for controlling dogs and extensive documentation which proved his long time involvement in trafficking of dogs for the blood sport of dog fighting. His documentation which spanned decades paid particular attention to promoting established winning bloodlines and to long-term conditioning of animals.

· Animal advocates consider dog fighting to be one of the most serious forms of animal abuse, not only for the violence that the dogs endure during and after the fights, but because of the suffering they often endure in training. At least one major study alleges that the prevailing mind set among dog fighters is that, the more the dog suffers, the tougher he will become, and the better fighter he will therefore be. In addition to the treatment a dog receives when he has potential as a fighter, according to a filing in U.S. District Court in Richmond by federal investigators in Virginia, which was obtained under the Freedom of Information Act and published by the Baltimore Sunon July 6, 2007, a losing dog or one whose potential is considered unacceptable faces "being put to death by drowning, strangulation, hanging, gun shot, electrocution or some other method.

· dog fighters are often involved in illegal gambling, the sale and possession of drugs, as well as illegal weapons.

· dog fighters and spectators have a history of violent and criminal behavior toward people.

Saturday, July 24, 2010

It's that time again - Blog Hop Time! We've been experiencing some computer malfunctions recently and finally our computer just fried a couple of days ago. Hmmm, fried. Fries. French fries! What? Oh. Gracie says not that kind of fried. Oh, well. Anyway, we're borrowing Dad's computer for just a minute to join the Blog Hop, but he doesn't really like us to use his computer. He says we always mess it up. Guess he's got a point since ours is fried. Hmmm, fried. Fries. French fries! Oh, whatever!

We've been missing out on stuff, we're sure - like Luna's slumber party! We've got to get over there to check out what insanity ensued while we were locked out of blogland.

Also, we've just recently learned about Sweet Shelby and wanted to give her a shout out! and hope that she's recovering nice with the help of Mona and the Mommy and all the well wishers who have been sending TLC her way.

PeeS - We can't seem to get links to work, either!
Anyway, on to the hop before we fry another computer! Hmmm, fry. Fries. French fries!

This is a representational photo of us locking horns with our computer!

Wednesday, July 21, 2010

Ha! It's not what you're thinking! Although you should beware of those, too!

We couldn't leave Yellowstone without showing you some of the famous stinking boiling pools, geysers and mud pots. And, no, we didn't get a pic of Old Faithful blowing its top. Everybody's seen pictures of that, right?

The blue ones may look like a swimming pool, but don't jump in - they're boiling hot!

Apparently, the buffalo and wildlife know better than to get too close to the boiling water. Which just proves that animals are smarter than humans!

This looks like something Gracie pukes up sometimes!

PeeS - If you have to fart, this is the place to do it - trust us, no one would notice!

Monday, July 19, 2010

There are all kinds of goings on in blog land lately - Blog the Change, Saturday Blog Hop, Oskar's Tell About Your People - and coming up - Luna's Slumber Party (7/23), Puddles Roast (7/28), Frankie, Ruby & Penny's upcoming nuptials (8/21) and crikey, we just found out that Puddles and Mayzie are hosting a Bachelorette Party for Ruby & Penny (8/13)! With all this going on, we got totally distracted and haven't kept up with posting our road trip adventures. So, where were we? Ahh, yes, we were herding buffalo in Yellowstone and fighting over a piece of charred wood ...Speaking of buffalo - one day Mom went into town to wash clothes and we stayed close to the campsite with Dad. There we were relaxing in the woods, listening to Dad noodling around on the guitar, when all of a sudden, about a hundred forest rangers came riding up on horseback, or maybe it was just two, whatever. They told us that we should get inside the trailer and stay there for awhile because a herd of buffalo might possibly be stampeding, wandering through the campground on the way back to Yellowstone. Apparently, buffalo stray outside the Park on occasion and the rangers only had until a certain date to get them back in the Park to safety before hunters would be allowed to shoot them - YIKES! This really is the WILD WEST.

Headless Ranger on Horseback rounding up buffalo

As it turned out, the buffalo took a different route and we didn't see them in our campsite. BUT, while this was going on here, Mom spotted another stray buffalo on the street corner next to a convenience store in town. At first she thought it was a statute - then it moved! The police came and rounded him up. Apparently, it's illegal for a buffalo to buy a lottery ticket in Yellowstone! She didn't get a picture 'cause she couldn't figure out how to use the camera on her phone which is weird 'cause she has opposable thumbs! But we're gonna go out on a limb and guess that he/she probably looked something like this -

Anyway, on to a more bucolic setting. Here are some elk soaking up some rays and having the good life.

That is quite a nice house they have!

We even spotted a bald eagle and her baby in their nest. How cool is that?

Saturday, July 17, 2010

We just wanted to dedicate today's Blog Hop post to everyone who participated in the Blog the Change for Animals Blog Hop Thursday - whether it was to post, comment, vote, donate or offer moral support. Every single action helps, no matter how big or small. It was truly heartwarming to see everything that is being done to help animals. There were so many posts Thursday, we'll probably all be visiting new blogs and sites for days! What a great thing! So, here's to animal lovers everywhere -

Don't you just love this little guy? It was created by Michelle at LittleToad, artist extraordinaire - she also designed our fun & fabulous logo! This lovable guy is available as a note card in her Etsy shop for that someone special. In this case, all of YOU!

Thursday, July 15, 2010

We're blog hopping for Be the Change for Animals (btc4animals.com) today. You may have read our previous post about Mountainair Animal Shelter in New Mexico and their desperate need for a proper shelter. We learned about the shelter when we visited Mountainair in May. They were able to raise funds for the building shell (yay!) but must rely totally on volunteers to put it up. In addition, they have run into a few snags with the building plans. The new shelter will be a public building for the Town of Mountainair so there are more regulations than for a private building. And that's saying a lot 'cause there's lots of red tape and permits required to build almost anything here in coastal SC - even if it's your own land!

We know that ALL shelters need help and support in every way imaginable - money, food, donations, volunteers. But, these guys don't even have a proper shelter from the weather. This shelter's needs just really moved us because some of our own shelters close to home in SC have raised millions for brand new state-of-the-art facilities and the needs of the Mountainair shelter seem so small in comparison.

Here is Mountainair's current animal shelter.

Even with these limited resources, they have done amazing things for Mountainair's stray animals. Check out their Facebook page here Mountainair Shelter Facebook.

Mountainair may be in desert of New Mexico, but it gets COLD up there in the mountains in the winter. If you live near Mountainair and have blankets, sheets or towels that you would be willing to donate, they would be most grateful!

And they would LOVE it if you would vote for the Town of Mountainair (New Mexico) after you click every day to donate food on The Animal Rescue Site. $100,000 in grants is up for grabs for eligible Petfinder members. So, please vote every every day, or as often as you can. Voting ends August 22, 2010.

And for those of you who are on TWITTER or FACEBOOK - it would be PAWSOME if you would send this post along to anyone you know! We've noticed some of you are fabulous at the socializing thing - much better than us. We can barely keep up with a blog!

If you know any humans who are into accessorizing themselves and supporting a shelter, have 'em check out this shop on Etsy for some cool handcrafted sterling silver jewelry. She even makes some dog-themed stuff for you dog lovers! See some examples on our sidebar over there to the right. She has offered to donate 20% of all her Etsy sales during the month of August to Mountainair's Animal Shelter! PAWS UP!

Thanks for your kind support and for being the change for animals! Okay, we're done beggin' for now!